EXCLUSIVE I'm a nutrition expert, these are my three clever psychological tricks to help you stop your cravings for ultra-processed foods in just 30 days: Part three of NICHOLA LUDLAM-RAINE's must-read guide By Nicola Ludlam-raine Published: 02:15 BST, 22 July 2024 | Updated: 02:15 BST, 22 July 2024 e-mail View comments Ultra-processed food can be hard to resist. Not only is it designed to be quick and convenient to eat, research shows that certain additives and flavour combinations can lead to addictive eating behaviours. Today, in the final part of my series to wean you off UPFs in just 30 days, we will look at — and tackle — the psychology behind these cravings.
Humans are complex creatures and we eat for many reasons, not just for energy. So understanding why we are eating UPFs, even though we know they are bad for us, is just as important as understanding what we are eating. In my clinic, I usually divide the reasons we eat into three different types of hunger: head, heart and stomach hunger.
The final part of Dietitian Nicola Ludlam-Raine's series to wean you off ultra-processed foods in just 30 days will look at the psychology behind UPF cravings Head hunger: Those random food cravings Food marketing is clever, and our 'food environment' can pull us into thinking about and wanting particular foods. What I described as 'head' hunger is the random food cravings you may get that are often triggered by visual cues — like when you see cakes being iced on the confectio.